ABOUT THE
PLEDGE 2000
Dear beloved faithful,
“We offer
unto Thee, o Lord, Thine own of Thine own,on behalf of all, and for all”
First of all we
wish to thank you very much for your generous contributions you have sent to
the Holy Trinity Romanian Orthodox Church throughout 1999. We pray that the
Almighty Lord rewards you hundredfold.
Attached, you
are cordially invited to accept this package with some 53 weekly envelopes, one
per each Sunday, marked individually, from Jan.1 through december 31, 2000.
Hereinafter,
we will try to once-again explain to you our “Pledging Program”, to the
fullness of our ability:
Since 3 years
ago, our parish replaced the customery
“parish membership system” (which was a set annual amount of donation to
the church by each member of the parish) with a voluntary weekly donation by
all the members and supporters of the church, as they will individually find
proper to pledge.
Because we, as faithful, should return back to God, some
portion of what He blessed us with, as a thanksgiving for everything He
provides for us: good health, spiritual and material prosperity, our family,
our children and grand-children, a place of work or a happy retirement,
protection in the uncertain society we live in, blessings upon our children and
grand-children at school, in marriage and the place of work, etc., etc.
Because it has been proven as the way of the future for THE
CHURCH. The majority of American
Churches, Catholic and Protestant alike, fulfil their budget almost exclusively
by the “pledge participation” of their membership.
Because it was unequivocally
proven that, in order to
contemplate the building of a new church, we have to get first hand knowledge
who is participating, and with what amount, towards the building project, to
budget for it.
Herewith below are some of many other reasons which the Parish General
Assembly carefully considered at the
January 30th- 2000 Meeting, reafirming unanimously ints committment
in favour of the “pledging method” vs “membership”:
By the “pledging method”, the church extends real help, especially to the retired
members, whose monthly revenue is very limited, thus easier affording to make a
weekly donation of some $2.00-$5.00/per
week in place of an annual lump-sum of $ 100.00 or more, which is quite a
substantial expense that could seriously affect their limited budget;
By bringing
to church the weekly pledge donation, the faithful offer back to God: “Thine own of Thine own, on behalf of all,
and for all”, as we pray during the most essential moments of the Divine
Eucharist. In the Old Country, the faithful get in line in front of the Holy
Altar, presenting to the Lord their weekly “offering”: a candle, a dyptic-list of all the living
and the departed to be remembered, a prosphora (prescura), and their monitory
donation. We should do like-wise here in America.
By the
weekly pledge, the faithful always remember the commandment of God to offer
Him, at least once a week, on Sunday, together with “ourselves” (our
participation in the service) also our material blessings, according to our
financial abilities and love for His Holy House (the Church).
Those of us who, for blessed reasons, can not attend
the Church Services on a regular basis could at least, by contributing to the
church through our weekly “pledge”, offer our “thanksgiving” to God our
Creator, Governor and Sustainer of All. Even if we do not go to Church that
Sunday, we could send our offering pledge by mail, or bring it to church the
following Sunday when we attend;
Remembering to send our pledge to Church on a weekly or monthly basis, we always aknowledge,
like an intimate confession directly to God, the role our Lord Jesus Christ and
His Church have deep in our souls, hearts, and our daily lives.
Involving the whole family in taking care of the
“Church’s administrative business” by contributing on the weekly basis, we
teach our children and grandchildren their present moral duty, if they are over
18 years of age, and their financial obligations towards their church. If we do
not teach them now, by our actions, deeds and example, they will never learn; they
will never have any interest in the church. Otherwise, there will be no Church
there for them when they will really need it.
By your enrollment in the pledging system, our
church could establish a more accurate budget, knowing how to budget realistically
for different programs, especially those the church has its divine calling for
(Sunday School, youth and adult religious education, spiritual retreats,
special services during Lents, seminars with guest speakers, consistent
religious services, held in both Romanian and English Languages, counselling
for marriage, baptismal instructions, etc.), the implimentation of “spiritual endeavors” throughout the current
year.
By the “pledging experience” of 2000, the church
will have a clearer image if our community is able financially to support the
building of the over 3.5 million dollars project, proposed for the Sunland
location.
Surely, there
are many other reasons in favour of this endeavor.
It is my anticipation that
the New Pledge Committee will be made out primarely of women of the council,
therefore, in the next 3-4 weeks you will be contacted by your area
representative, a council-woman, further explaining to you how the system
works, ready to help you with the understanding of this new council endeavor.
Please have patience with her when she will call you.
If for any
objective reasons you can not attend the church, on a regular basis, then,
please send your pledge donation to church on a monthly basis, in the
self-addressed envelope herewith enclosed. Your account, which is the Pledge
Package Number, will be credited monthly. If you need additional self-addressed
envelopes, please let us know. Call the parish office (323/255-8583), leave
your name, and Pledging Number/which is in the upper-right hand corner, and the
quantity of the self-addressed envelopes you are in need of, and we will send
them to you within one week.
You are
reminded that all your donations to the church through the “Pledging Program”,
are Tax-deductible and you are urged to use this status for your tax-purposes. In the spirit of the
Episcopate Constitution, all the members of your family (18 years of age and
older) should pledge individually. Thanking you in anticipation for your cooperation
and generous donations; Remaining your’s faithfully,
Very Rev. Fr. Constantin
Alecse,
Parish Priest (on behalf of the parish Council)